They say opposites
attract. And in the case of werewolves Anna Latham and Charles Cornick,
they mate. The son-and enforcer-of the leader of the North American
werewolves, Charles is a dominant alpha. While Anna, an omega, has the
rare ability to calm others of her kind.

Now that the werewolves
have revealed themselves to humans, they can't afford any bad
publicity. Infractions that could have been overlooked in the past must
now be punished, and the strain of doing his father's dirty work is
taking a toll on Charles.

Nevertheless, Charles and Anna are
sent to Boston, when the FBI requests the pack's help on a local serial
killer case. They quickly realize that not only the last two victims
were werewolves-all of them were. Someone is targeting their kind. And
now Anna and Charles have put themselves right in the killer's sights...

MY REVIEW:

I
received this audiobook for review from the publisher. I did not receive
any compensation for my review, and the views expressed herein are
my own.

Fair Game takes
place close to a year after Hunting Groundends. Not just the wolves have been “outed” to the public, but also
fae. As a result, CNTRP (pronounced can-trip) has been created, which is a new agency formed to deal
with preternaturals. The acronym stands for Combined Nonhuman and Transhuman
Relations Provisors.

A serial killer has been on the loose in Boston, and the FBI
has invited CNTRP and the spokesperson for the wolves, Adam Hauptman, to
consult with them to see whether they can aid in the investigation. Adam is the
Alpha of the Tri-Cities pack and, because his mate has been injured, Bran
decides to send Anna as a replacement to act as their spokesperson. Anna is
very perceptive and highly skilled at reading people, and she also gives off a
non-threatening presence. From the forensic photographs, Charles recognizes not
just wolves as some of the victims but also fae. Charles and Anna must work with
the local Boston Alpha, Isaac, who was Changed about the same time as Anna.
When another fae is kidnapped, it is a race against the clock as Charles and
Anna try to uncover who is responsible for these hideous crimes.

Fair Game is quite
a bit darker than the rest of the books in the Alpha & Omega series. The
violence is more graphic, and the book just has an overall darker feel to it.
It matched the change in Anna’s and Charles’ relationship, which has also
become riddled with problems. Because the wolves are no longer a secret, Bran
has put tighter reins on the packs and cannot allow any wolves to behave in a
manner that is out of control. Problematic wolves are dealt with much more
severely, which means that Charles is sent out more and more often to carry out
the Marrok’s sentences. Where before newly-Changed wolves may have been let off
with a warning, they are now being eliminated by Charles. With so many kills,
his guilt is getting the better of him and he is plagued by the souls of those
he has punished. To keep Anna safe, he shuts down his bond to her so that they
troubled souls cannot harm her. However, by doing so, he has severed the part
of him that gives him peace. Anna and Charles are both suffering from his
withdrawal, and she even is at odds with Bran because she blames him for his
part in making Charles the way that he is now. When her pleas fall on deaf
ears, she turns to Asil to see if he can intervene.

Despite the increased tension between Anna and Charles,
there are some tender moments like this one:

“"I need to go," she said to his chest. "I
need – " His mouth closed over hers, hot and hungry, warming her mouth as
his body warmed her body. "Me," Charles said, his voice dark and
gravelly as if it had traveled up from the bottom of the earth, his eyes a
bright gold. "You need me."”

This book ends with what promises to be excitement in the
next chapter of the Alpha & Omega series! Briggs is going to really shake
things up!

With each book, I feel as though I am getting to know all of
the key players on a deeper level. I love that. Briggs doesn’t create
one-dimensional characters; they are multifaceted. I also like how she changed
up the relationship a bit between Anna and Charles. Until now, their
relationship has evolved in a healthy way. Because of the nature of Charles’
responsibilities, his change was unavoidable. And his reaction was so...Charles
– sacrificing his own mental health because of his love for Anna. I like how
Anna is not afraid to give Bran a piece of her mind! She is the only one that
can get away with that.

I’m so sad that I am caught up now in the series! I now have
to go and read Briggs’ sister series, Mercy Thompson. That will have to satisfy
me until the next installment in the Alpha & Omega series comes out.

I was so pleased that Narrator Holter Graham reverted back
to his original vocalizations for Bran and Charles as first portrayed in Cry Wolf! Graham’s narration is the right blend of emotion and intensity, and he
really is a delight to listen to!

MY RATING:

5 stars!! It was superb! I loved it, and I will likely re-read it again in the future! You should definitely read it! Thanks to Penguin Audio for the review copy!

Cannot wait for Fair Game! I so love Anna and Charles (almost as much as I love Mercy and Adam), so I need to hurry up and read Fair Game. I'd forgotten about their story for a while since there was a fairly significant gap in between the release dates for book two and this book, but now that I've read your review I have to run out and buy it:) 5 star read here I come!

I enjoyed this one, too - although I do prefer the Mercy books. I just got the newest Ilona Andrews last week - so we'll see how it goes. I love the world the Kate Daniels books are set in, so it may be fine. But I think I'll miss Kate! So we'll see...